Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

I owe my obsession with Neil Gaiman’s work to a good friend who lent me her copy of Neverwhere for a business trip I took to Seattle. I read the book in an hour, and was instantly hooked. I got my own copy of Neverwhere for the library, and recently I ordered my own copy of Anansi Boys for vacation reading. It didn’t get here in time for my vacation, but I grabbed it and read it as soon as the box arrived at my doorstep. My enthusiasm and anticipation wasn’t wasted.

Anansi Boys is the story of Fat Charlie, who finds out after his father dies that he has a brother he didn’t know about. He’s living a normal, easygoing life in London, working for a talent agency and getting ready to marry his girlfriend. Then, he makes the mistake of asking a spider to tell his brother to come see him. You see, Fat Charlie’s dad was Anansi, the Spider god, God of Stories. Fat Charlie’s brother is Spider, and he seems to have gotten all of the powers of their father. He’s charming, persuasive, and he does nothing but wreck Charlie’s well-ordered life. He steals his girl, gets him fired, and drives his crazy boss even crazier. The light, happy story works its way to a dark place, and into a mythic battle between Tiger and Spider, but it all works out in the end.

The story flows like an old Anansi tale. Tiger is the villain; Bird Woman is at The End of the World; everyone wants to own the world’s stories. I really like how this book and American Gods pull gods out of the old myths to create modern myths. It’s an interesting and enjoyable idea, a way to bring the old myths into new knowledge. I will always love Gaiman’s stories, for the quirky characters he creates, the absurd situations that somehow feel just right, and the dialogue he creates that suits each character to a tee. However, I admit, I liked American Gods better, and nothing will ever top Neverwhere.

Rating: 4 Purrs